{"id":70126,"date":"2021-07-17T08:00:27","date_gmt":"2021-07-17T16:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cogwriter.com\/news\/?p=70126"},"modified":"2021-08-23T04:57:18","modified_gmt":"2021-08-23T12:57:18","slug":"wsj-is-pope-francis-leading-the-church-to-a-schism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cogwriter.com\/news\/religious-news\/wsj-is-pope-francis-leading-the-church-to-a-schism\/","title":{"rendered":"WSJ: Is Pope Francis Leading the Church to a Schism?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"\"
\nPope Francis (Pixabay)
\n<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

COGwriter<\/a><\/p>\n

Certain “traditionalist” Roman Catholics are upset about an announcement from the pontiff yesterday:<\/p>\n

July 17, 2021<\/p>\n

On Friday, the Vatican announced a new order that would barely affect most practicing Catholics: there are now strict rules for when and where the traditional Latin Mass can be conducted. Among other new regulations, priests can no longer decide to celebrate the Latin Mass; they must instead ask permission from their bishops, who should make sure that there is an organic demand from the actual faithful and that the priest is not seeking to celebrate the Latin Mass because he sees the normal, vernacular version of it as invalid.<\/p>\n

The response to this news among a certain group of Catholics was immediate outrage. \u201cThe lack of mercy shown here toward traditional Catholics, Benedict XVI, and the young laity and clergy drawn to the Latin Mass is stunning,\u201d the Catholic journalist Raymond Arroyo said<\/a> on Twitter. \u201cThis will create the division that Francis claims to cure through this ill advised and destructive new law.\u201d Others warned that such a decision would drive away<\/a> enthusiastic young Catholics, or talked about how the traditional Latin Mass had drawn them<\/a> to Catholicism in the first place. Some vowed to continue to attend<\/a>\u2014or in the case of certain priests, conduct\u2014the traditional mass. Others spoke openly of their belief that Francis was evil<\/a> and wrong<\/a>. https:\/\/slate.com\/human-interest\/2021\/07\/latin-mass-pope-francis-traditionalist-critics.html<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yes, Pope Francis has upset some who call themselves traditionalists with this pronouncement.<\/p>\n

Yet, while some Roman Catholics wrongly believe that the original Christians held “mass’ in Latin, that is simply not true.<\/p>\n

Notice the following that is in my free online book, Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Latin Mass and Liturgic Changes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Despite the view of some Roman \u2018traditionalists,\u2019 the original church liturgy was not in Latin nor did it resemble Roman Catholic mass. Notice three Roman Catholic reports:<\/p>\n

In the third and fourth centuries A.D. \u2026 Latin began to replace Greek as the common language of the Roman world and soon became the language of the liturgy. Exactly how this change in the liturgy came about is uncertain. \u2026 Because Christians had not used Latin for worship prior to this, words had to be adapted or imported (often from Greek) to express Christian ideas, beginning the development of an ecclesiastical form of Latin. There is also evidence that the Roman Canon was influenced by prayers from the Eastern churches. (Tufano VM. When did we start celebrating Mass in Latin? US Catholic, June 18, 2010)<\/p>\n

The word Mass (missa<\/em>) first established itself as the general designation for the Eucharistic Sacrifice in the West after the time of Pope Gregory the Great (d. 604), \u2026 Mass goes back in \u2026 a custom that takes us at once into the third century (Pohle J. Sacrifice of the Mass. The Catholic Encyclopedia)<\/p>\n

Roman Mass \u2026 and the established customs became \u201critualized\u201d over the centuries. \u2026 As early as the fourth century, fixed liturgical rites can be found in the Church. (The Traditional Latin Mass: A Brief History. MyCatholicSource.com, accessed 09\/22\/20)<\/p>\n

Some assert Latin Mass began to be used by the Roman Bishop Victor c. 190. But even if the early use of Latin in the late 2nd<\/sup> century is true (and using the common language of an area for church services makes sense), Latin still was not the original language of original church services\u2014that was Aramaic\/Hebrew. However, Greek quickly became used as the New Testament epistles\u2014which were written in Greek\u2014help demonstrate.<\/p>\n

Not only were original church services not in Latin, according to The<\/em> Catholic Encyclopedia<\/em>, they were not called Mass until the 7th<\/sup> century. Furthermore, as many rituals in Latin Mass came from the 3rd<\/sup> and 4th<\/sup> centuries, those practices were not really a part of the regular original services.<\/p>\n

Roman Catholic sources clearly teach that ritualized Latin Mass was a change from the original catholic liturgy. More changes occurred in the 13th<\/sup> through 15th<\/sup> centuries (Jedin H, ed. History of the Church, Volume 2. Crossroad, New York, 1993, p. 326).<\/p>\n

The Eastern Orthodox, also, have freely admitted that their liturgy CHANGED. Notice this from one of their writers:<\/p>\n

The liturgical practices of the church at Antioch did not stagnate. As does every early tradition of the church, the liturgy continued to expand in content and meaning. (Lucas J. Liturgical Pattern and Experience in First Century Antioch. By the Waters: Selected Works by Students of St. Tikhon\u2019s Orthodox Theological Seminary, vol 7, Fall 2008, pp. 40-52)<\/p>\n

The original church liturgy did not have much resemblance to Eastern Orthodox services, which begin and end with the \u201csigning of the cross.\u201d The teaching that the \u201cliturgical practices of the church at Antioch did not stagnate\u201d demonstrates that what ended up in Antioch changed\u2014hence the Eastern Orthodox admit that what they now have is NOT the original catholic liturgy.<\/p>\n

Some claim that they follow the \u201cDivine Liturgy of St. James.\u201d However, that was not original, nor did James come up with it as The Catholic Encyclopedia<\/em> and the OrthodoxWiki<\/em> also understand:<\/p>\n

\u2026 the famous liturgy of St. James. That it was actually composed by St. James the Less, as first Bishop of Jerusalem, is not now believed by any one; (Fortescue A. Liturgy of Jerusalem. The Catholic Encyclopedia)<\/p>\n

The general scholarly consensus is that this liturgy originated in Jerusalem during the late fourth or early fifth century. It quickly became the primary liturgy in Jerusalem and Antioch. Although it was later superseded in Jerusalem and Antioch by the Liturgy of St. Basil and the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, it had already spread to other areas of the Church. (Liturgy of St. James. OrthodoxWiki, accessed 06\/04\/21)<\/p>\n

So, what the Eastern Orthodox now do was not original.<\/p>\n

Unlike how Eastern Orthodox church service were conducted, there were no icons, incense, signing of the cross, or leavened bread as part of the original church services. Nor \u201cchanting\u201d sermons nor hymns sung to Mary. None of the known current Eastern Orthodox litanies (\u2018petitions\u2019 recited by the clergy and responded to in a recurring formula by the people) were originally used by early Christians either.<\/p>\n

The CCOG {Continuing<\/em> Church of God} maintains it has continued the original catholic church practices when it comes to church services, or the liturgy.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, no, Latin mass is not an original tradition of the catholic church–but a change in liturgy.<\/p>\n

That being said, various ones think that Pope Francis has taken steps that may lead to a schism. The Wall Street Journal<\/em> reported the following:<\/p>\n

\n

Is Pope Francis Leading the Church to a Schism?<\/h2>\n

July 16, 2021<\/p>\n

The threat of schism is alarming for any religious community but especially for the Catholic Church, whose very name is derived from the ancient Greek word for \u201cuniversal\u201d and whose core identity is inextricably tied to its global unity under the pope. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, an official handbook of church teaching, defines schism specifically in terms of papal authority, as \u201cthe refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Critics of the process under way in Germany, which is officially called the Synodal Path, say that proponents of change there are flouting the pope\u2019s authority by challenging teachings of which he is the chief custodian. But German progressives deny any intention to break with Rome and insist they are taking their cues from the pope himself, who has encouraged free discussion of sensitive topics that were taboo under his conservative predecessors. The synod originated as a response to a 2018 report commissioned by Germany\u2019s bishops on the clerical sex-abuse crisis, which called for a more positive attitude to homosexuality and for rethinking priestly celibacy and the church\u2019s power structure. Organizers expanded the agenda to address the role of women.<\/p>\n

People on both sides agree that the pope is now trying to restrain the progressive movement in Germany, disappointing many who cheered him earlier in his reign. https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/is-pope-francis-leading-the-church-to-a-schism-11626447418<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, there are liberal Roman Catholics thinking that Pope Francis is might cause a schism.<\/p>\n

Pope Francis has been facing aspects of rebellion from the many who consider themselves ‘Conservative Catholics.’ Notice something from the past:<\/p>\n

September 10, 2019:<\/p>\n

Pope Francis says he is not afraid of a schism within the Catholic Church, even as he confronts criticism from conservative Catholics about his leadership.<\/p>\n

“I pray that there will not be schisms,” the Pope said Tuesday, “but I am not afraid.”<\/p>\n

The Pope’s remarks came in response to a question from a journalist at a press conference aboard the papal plane. Francis was returning to Rome from Africa, where he spent six days in Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius.<\/p>\n

A schism is a formal break within the church, usually due to disputes over Catholic teaching.<\/p>\n

“There have been many schisms in the Church,” Francis said, referring to the institution’s long history of religious disputes. https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2019\/09\/10\/world\/pope-francis-schism\/index.html<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Francis basically has ignored protests as he pushes his interfaith and ecumenical agendas. (The idea of a schism will be addressed towards the end of this post.)<\/p>\n

Here is something he tweeted in 2019<\/p>\n

\n
\n

I wish to endorse a global event, to take place on 14 May 2020 on the theme Reinventing the Global Educational Alliance. https:\/\/t.co\/rcVFp7iigp<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Pope Francis (@Pontifex) September 12, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n